Professional Development

Over the weekend, I went to the local theater to watch Sully, the movie about the US Airways pilot who successfully landed his A320 jet on an icy river after losing both engines shortly after takeoff. I enjoyed the movie for its main story line but also for some of the back story elements that were included that were scarcely…

I’ve had a lot of luck in my career, especially as it pertains to my work environment. Although I can’t say every technical job I’ve had was all unicorns and bacon, I’ve been very fortunate to have been treated fairly and professionally through most of my employment history. Not only was I treated respectfully, but the last three employers I…

What is permissible is not always honorable. – Marcus Tullius Cicero Rules. Best practices. Guidelines. Design patterns. Policies. All are good and necessary, and you’ll rarely find anyone who will argue against the need to establish boundaries and set expectations. But can adherence to rules and design patterns be taken too far? I believe it can. The Rules Gone Amok:…

Like many others, I’m planning a few changes for my life for next year. I’m a believer in finding one’s own way, while still abiding the advice of the wise. Often called upon for inspirations are the timeless words of Confucius, the inspiring speeches of Martin Luther King, the controversial yet insightful analyses of Sigmund Freud, and the various authors…

Ok, I have two admissions that I must bare to the world in this post. The first is that I’ve been a little lazy. I’ve admired – from a distance – this T-SQL Tuesday thing ever since it started. It’s been great! A bunch of people blogging on the same day about their own interpretation of some common topic –…

“Hey man, this is Ty*, what’s happening?” roared the familiar voice in my Bluetooth earpiece. It was a voice I knew well, and briefly brought a smile to my face. After exchanging pleasantries and catching up a bit, Ty revealed the real reason for his call: “Say, dude, I’m looking for a new job, and I was hoping you’d write…

I’d like to share a networking success story. Last year, I blogged about my experience at the PASS Summit of 2005, where I was essentially a wallflower and didn’t really do any networking. Since then, I’ve realized its importance and have embraced professional networking as a key component in a successful career. Ever since then I have carried through on…

Earlier this week, I delivered a presentation entitled “Deploying Report Builder 2.0 for Self-Service Reporting” as part of the new SQL Lunch series. This was my first presentation for this series, and I was pleasantly surprised with the turnout – thanks to the 110 people who showed up! We did have a technical snafu: apparently the presenter link was mistakenly…

If you are in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area and are interested in SQL Server developer training, there is an opportunity coming up later this month. Mike Hotek is delivering a 4-weekend course on SQL Server development in Ft. Worth. The $25 course fee is an incredible bargain, and having attended one of his business intelligence courses before, I can attest…

A recent blog by Jack Corbett (No Training Budget Still No Excuse, followed up by SSC’s Steve Jones here) hit the nail on the head with respect to taking charge of one’s own career. I won’t belabor the point by repeating their words here, but the message is that everyone has access to quality SQL Server training even if your…